


forty miles (into the clouds)

by stormss



Category: 9-1-1: Lone Star (TV 2020)
Genre: Established Relationship, Fluff, Idiots in Love, M/M, Prompt Fill
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-18
Updated: 2020-03-18
Packaged: 2021-02-28 21:01:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,406
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23193607
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stormss/pseuds/stormss
Summary: "Aw, come on, you love him," TK says, drawing out theoas he crouches down next to Buttercup, making his puppy-dog eyes up at Carlos — somehow managing to mirror the dog exactly. And as he watches it all unfold, Carlos focuses his attention on his boyfriend and thinks,you have no idea.*Or, it's bath-day for Buttercup, and TK volunteers himself and Carlos for the job.
Relationships: Carlos Reyes/TK Strand
Comments: 28
Kudos: 357
Collections: 9-1-1 Lone Star ▶ Carlos Reyes / Tyler Kennedy "TK" Strand





	forty miles (into the clouds)

**Author's Note:**

> prompt fill!! [ao3theskyisblue](https://ao3theskyisblue.tumblr.com/) asked: _I adore your fics omg 😄 how about Tarlos bonding with Buttercup? 🐕_ thank you for enjoying my fics, i hope this did your idea justice!!! 
> 
> the title comes from _to noise making (sing)_ by hozier. come say hi or send me prompts on [tumblr!](https://reyesstrand.tumblr.com/)

Carlos meets Buttercup at the tail-end of a chaotic day, and the dog's big brown eyes and slobbery smile, all coupled with the warmth radiating off TK and the way he pulls him close despite the watching eyes in the firehouse, immediately has the stress falling from his tense shoulders. His mom worked too hard for them to realistically have pets growing up, and the only chance he and his sisters had at caring for any animals was when they visited their abuela and her cats. But despite not having any real experience with dogs — especially of the gentle-giant variety, like Buttercup — he falls quickly in love with him, always looking forward to seeing Buttercup trodding toward him in a welcomed greeting whenever he hangs out on the main floor of the station, waiting to pick TK up. Paul assures him that he isn't alone in his sudden urge to shower the dog with all the attention he wants; the rest of the team is just as bad, picking up organic treats from stores an hour outside of Austin or sneaking him globs of peanut butter, and trampling over each other to offer to walk him around the block. 

There's one job that few members of the 126 willingly do, and Carlos finds out why on a sunny afternoon. 

He always feels like he should be doing something on his days off, which are rare enough as it is; Michelle claims that it stems from his innate need to help people, and the fact that he's able to channel his desire to be in control into his hard and sometimes never-ending work. But being with TK — officially, which still catches him by surprise — and allowing himself to just _breathe_ and exist outside of the confines of his squad car helps him to truly appreciate his days off. Spending his time at the firehouse helps, too; he's gotten close with Paul and he's known Judd since he was just on traffic duty after graduating from the academy. Being with TK when they're not on a call is definitely an added bonus, too. 

But as he walks into the firehouse today, waving quickly to Marjan as she scribbles down something on a notepad and accepting the welcoming hand on his shoulder from Paul before he continues polishing the panels of the ladder truck, he senses that something's just a little off. Almost like they're trying to make themselves look busy — something he affirms for himself when he catches Mateo as he starts scrubbing the same helmet for the third time since he's been in the room. He also gathers that the initial text he'd gotten from TK half an hour ago — _hey wanna come help me with something fun??_ — might have something to do with all of them avoiding the upper level of the firehouse. 

Carlos takes the steps two at a time, and returns Captain Strand's wave through the glass wall of his office, before he steps into the recreational area, where he finds TK lounging on one of the couches with a book in his hand, Buttercup passed out next to him. He lifts his eyebrows when he sees him, eyes crinkling a little bit as he tosses his book to the cushion next to him, getting to his feet and greeting Carlos with a hug and a quick kiss. Buttercup, now fully alert to the fact that there's someone else there, nudges his nose against Carlos' thigh until he huffs a laugh and scratches at the dog's head, much to Buttercup's delight. 

"So, do I want to know what 'something fun' is?" Carlos asks, using one hand to create air quotes while keeping his other arm curled around TK's slim waist. He cocks a brow, and TK grins innocently. 

Sometimes Carlos thinks that TK knows how to play him. No, scratch that — Carlos _knows_ that TK knows how to play him. 

All it seems to take is some giggly, breathless laugh; or maybe his trademark pouty smile while wrapping his strong arms around him. Add in a pinch of his heavy, heated stares, with his pretty green-grey eyes practically burning holes into his skin, and it's like Tk knows that he's captured Carlos, keeping him locked in a constant state of heart-eyes. And Carlos is all too aware that it's happening now, but he doesn't care — he's got his own tricks to use against TK, and his boyfriend seems to be aware of that, too. So he just lets it happen, watching as Buttercup presses his head against TK's hand until he wiggles out of Carlos' grasp to scratch lovingly at the dog's floppy ears, making soft sounds and kissing noises. Carlos thought he fell hard for the dog, but there's no beating the bond that TK seems to have with Buttercup.

While he's still a little off guard, TK says: "I told my dad we'd give Buttercup his bath."

"How does that work, exactly?" Carlos asks, seeking clarification as he can't help but to stare fondly at his boyfriend.

"There's a kiddie pool out behind the station," TK explains, still rubbing at the dog's back. "It's fun because he...kind of hates it?"

"I think we might have different definitions of fun, Ty," Carlos says, thinking about how they would even go about trying to get a one-hundred-and-twenty pound dog into a plastic kiddie pool, and making it through the process without one of them ending up completely drenched. And he doesn't want to sound too apprehensive about it, but he glances down to look Buttercup in the eye and just sees mischief, plain and simple. 

"Aw, come on, you love him," TK says, drawing out the _o_ as he crouches down next to Buttercup, making his puppy-dog eyes up at Carlos — somehow managing to mirror the dog exactly. And as he watches it all unfold, Carlos focuses his attention on his boyfriend and thinks, _you have no idea._

He finds himself melting. With a small smile pulling at his lips, he finally says: "Okay, come on." 

TK grins up at him, standing at full height to press a kiss to Carlos' cheek. Carlos easily rests his hands on TK's sides, and figures he'll do whatever he can to always elicit this sort of reaction out of his boyfriend. He slowly wraps his arms tighter around TK, pulling him close just to have him close, and TK turns his face to Buttercup. "Did you hear that boy? It's bath time!" 

They make their way downstairs, TK gathering materials as they go, handing Buttercup's leash off to Carlos quickly as he jogs over to a wall adorned with shelves. Paul comes up to him, then, and rubs at the top of Buttercup's head as he whistles lowly. "Damn, he's got you whipped." 

"Why, is it that bad?" Carlos asks, glancing over at TK as he rummages through a drawer before meeting Paul's eyes. The man just smirks teasingly at him. 

"Let's just say that you're a brave soul, man." Paul's smirk grows wider as Carlos quirks a brow, before quickly dispersing to try and keep up the facade of looking busy, to avoid TK asking for another set of hands to help. 

Carlos sighs a little, accepting his fate as TK leads them out into the sunlight, Buttercup following along without any concern until he catches sight of the neon pink kiddie pool, which is printed with a bright blue fish pattern. As TK gets to work with filling it with water, Buttercup stops hard in his tracks, stubborn and strong enough to actually keep Carlos from moving any further, too. TK turns off the hose and puts down the bottle of oat-based dog shampoo and a small pile of towels onto the pavement next to the pool. 

"This is where the fun starts," TK says in that teasing voice of his, before he bends his knees and curls his arms under Buttercup's belly, lifting him up and into the pool. It's a sign of his healing — five months ago, the pulling of the stitches in his shoulder would've been too much for him. Once Buttercup is in the water, he makes a disgruntled noise and TK immediately smooths his hand down the dog's back. "It's okay, baby."

"So what do you need me to do?" Carlos asks, treading into unknown waters. TK looks at him, bright and open, and some of his unease washes away instantly. 

"Well, come here, first," TK says, cocking his chin up, silently asking for a kiss. The corner of Carlos' mouth quirks up, and he steps forward and gently frames TK's face in his hands, meeting him halfway. TK grins into it, pulling Carlos closer by tugging at his belt loops. Buttercup interrupts them, though, letting out a bark, apparently not wiling to let them have a nice moment while he's being subjected to the horrors of being bathed. They pull away from the kiss with a laugh, and TK directs his attention to Buttercup. "Okay, okay, we're coming." 

Carlos gets to hold Buttercup in place while TK uses a bucket to run water over the dog, getting his coat wet. Buttercup just gives him the stink eye the entire time, even as Carlos soothingly rubs circles over the dog's body while TK lathers him up with shampoo and scrubs him with gentle fingers. After a few long moments of working together, TK looks up at him with a wink. "We make a great team, right?" 

And Carlos really can't do anything else but hum in agreement and smile, because everything about this situation is ridiculous and he loves TK even more because of it. "Afraid so."

"Okay, last rinse," TK says, still smiling at him, the two of them maneuvering around the pool easily at this point. 

"Good boy," Carlos mutters, petting at Buttercup's soaked chest as TK pours clean water over him, careful of his eyes. When the last of the shampoo is rinsed away, Buttercup less than gracefully shakes all the water off of himself — but TK manages to jump out of the way, leaving Carlos to get the brunt of it, practically soaking him to the bone. "Aw, come on, Buttercup!" 

TK's clearly trying not to laugh and is really not that good at it; he eventually throws his head back and laughs at Carlos' exasperated expression as he hangs a towel over Buttercup's back and dries him as thoroughly as possible — until Carlos grins and leans over enough to splash some of the water directly from the pool at his boyfriend, drenching the front of his collared AFD shirt. 

His mouth falls open in shock, and TK's eyes are glimmering with mischief as he asks: "Is that how we're playing it, Reyes?" 

Buttercup huffs and lays down with the towel still draped over him like a cape. TK makes a face at Carlos, keeping his hands behind his back before he gets all up in his space, dumping the last of the clean water from the bucket over Carlos' head. Carlos gasps and runs a hand through his hair, blinking his eyes open to take in TK's goofy grin and crinkled eyes. Before Carlos can say anything, TK kisses him hard, knocking him back a few steps, and Carlos easily kisses him back. 

TK reaches up and runs a hand through Carlos' hair, his curls damp and loose, and Carlos mouths down TK's jaw. 

"You're a menace, you know that, right?" Carlos asks, and TK waggles his eyebrows. 

"Yeah, but you love me, so," TK shrugs, before leaning in to kiss him again. Buttercup lets out a happy bark, apparently forgiving them both for the bath, wriggling between the two of them. Carlos grins down at the dog and pats him on the head while TK immediately does the same. Carlos ducks forward and catches TK off guard, pressing a sweet kiss to his cheek. 

Mateo's exclaimed _"really?"_ breaks them from their little trance, both of them turning in unison to find most of the team watching them from the bay door. Paul's got his hands on his hips, smiling at them while shaking his head, and Marjan's grinning at them while holding out a treat for Buttercup, causing him to gallop over to her. 

"Of course you two would find a way to make this cute," Marjan says, as Judd captures a photo of the two of them. 

"Grace's gonna love this one, thanks boys," Judd winks at them, while TK shakes his head. Carlos rests his arm across TK's shoulders, urging him forward toward the firehouse so he can hopefully swipe a shirt from TK. Buttercup, still occupied with love from Marjan, licks a stripe up Carlos' arm when they pass, and Carlos grins down at Buttercup and manages to reach over and scratch at his ears once more before TK pulls him deeper into the firehouse. 

"So, are you down to do this again?" TK asks, bumping his hip against Carlos' as they make their way to the Camaro once they've both changed. Carlos leans against the driver's door and TK moves in close, hands resting behind his back as he looks at him coyly. 

"I think that can be managed," Carlos grins, brushing their noses together before kissing him quickly once more. "I'll see you later?" 

TK's eyes are still closed as the kiss lingers, and he slowly opens them, and Carlos' stomach swoops with adoration for this man. 

"I'll be there," TK promises, squeezing his hand before turning on his heel. Carlos watches him greet Buttercup in the bay door, framing his face in both hands and rubbing at his ears. Both he and Buttercup look at TK at the same time, admiring their boy, and Carlos smiles to himself as he gets in the car. His phone vibrates with a message and he checks it before driving off, seeing the photo Judd snapped of himself and TK, smiling at each other like idiots while drenched with water, Buttercup sitting between them and looking up at them with his tongue hanging out of his mouth, looking almost as if he's smiling. 

_buttercup's adopted you into the family, babe,_ is the message TK sends him with the photo, and warmth spreads through Carlos even more.

 _love you,_ Carlos types back, feeling his heart soar. If he saves the photo as his phone's wallpaper, well, nobody has to know about it. 

**Author's Note:**

> thank you for reading, comments/kudos make my day!!
> 
> stay well and safe during these hard times <33


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